A tour of Scun thorpe Steelworks by brake van

Last saturday I was lucky enough to join 13 other DEMU members for a tour of Corus Steelworks at Scun thorpe. Out 'tour' train was a diesel 0-4-0 shunter and two brake vans. Three or four people per verandah meant we all had a good view.

The tour lasted around four and a half hours and we got to see a great deal of this huge site.

Our locomotive arrived with the brake vans, ran round and was re-coupled to the other end.

 

Being coupled.

 

The tour is run by the Appleby Frodingham Railway Preservation Society. The starting point is Frodingham station.

 

Our view of the loco from the leading van.

 

First sight of some of the blast furnaces

 

Passing the hot metal 'torpedo' wagon repair bay

 

There were huge amounts of steel section everywhere

 

Approaching a blast furnace

 

Molten metal being poured into torpedo wagons

 

They have hundreds of 'internal use only' wagons of many different types.

 

Many of the internal use wagons have dayglo orange ends for high visibility.

 

This is the AFRPS depot and workshop, with the lounge coach, where we paused for lunch.

 

A sudden extremely loud noise had us looking skywards, thinking a VTOL jet aircraft was hovering above us - it was one of the blast furnaces making lots of smoke, flames and noise!

 

A class 60 arrives off the main line with empty steel flats.

 

One of the controls for the point motors. Just press the large button and the point changes, the blue LED lights show the position.

 

We are now on the high line above the coke ovens. One of the 0-4-0 shunters used on this duty is parked here.

 

This is the operating cab of a huge hopper wagon being propelled into position. Plenty of "weathering" on the roof!



The locomotive pushing the hopper.

 

A whole area was having new trackage laid and ballasted.

 

Newly laid track



Tamper

 

Another hopper of ballast ready.